Saturday, October 10, 2009

So the world woke up yesterday to the news that Obama got the Nobel Peace Prize. Amazing, but incomprehensible. In the stream of articles and blogs that were published, there was one where it was suggested that from now on the Oscar should also be given to aspiring actors in the HOPE that someday they might become great actors like Orson Wells or Katherine Hepburn. Nice.

Simply put, I was speechless!

What on Earth is going on with this world?

And, more specifically, what's going on with Scandinavian countries?

Sweden has recently been the scenario for a new round of attacks against Israel. As Caroline Glick writes: "Led by Sweden, which holds the rotating EU presidency, European governments have demanded that Israel end its provocative behavior."

Even Israeli deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon has called for re-examining ties with Sweden.

In a recent story published by Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, the Israeli army was accussed of harvesting Palestinian organs. And, when asked to take a position about this, Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, he did not speak against such blood libel.

And, according to Ayalon: "We must examine why Israel is being attacked by the Swedes."

As the first shock of the day went by, yesterday I sms'd my former Swedish boyfriend, Anders, a quite clever guy: "Are you guys out of your minds?" To which he responded: "In Norway, yes..." Be it as it may, as you see, Sweden is also misbehaving.

That said, please don't take me wrong. One can love Israel, the beacon of democracy, and also love Muslim and Arab countries and their people. One does not exclude the other.

I explained the atmosphere in Scandinavia because it will help us understand the spirit in which the Nobel Committee chose their 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. And, that committee was formed by three hard-core liberals, a socialist and a sort-of-right-winger.

Now, about the actual choice of Obama. The only actual problem, in my view, is that the president has actually not performed in any way whatsoever to improve life and peace worldwide. He was only elected because there was no other better option to choose over him. And, the American people were desperate to look for an alternative to Bush who basically wasted his chance and ended up being a disappointment to so many.

A majority of us, were hoping that maybe through a miracle, Obama would be our hero. But, so far it has not happened. However, be it as it may, the hastened decision by the Nobel committee has for me the taste of interference in our national affairs, and leaves me with a distaste for this not so subtle manipulation in our internal political affairs.

Be it as it may, a blunder has been committed, a real 'faux pas' by the Nobel committee, which mostly demonstrates the lack of lucidity in their judgement. And, they won't ever be able to erase that in the book of History.